Buttonhole-stitching machine.



F. A. READ.` Y uTToNHoLE smcmNG MACHINE.

- APPLICATION FILED SEPT. 18,1913.

1,170,331 f Patented Feb. 1, 1916.

2 SHEETS-SHEET 2.

4 /llll :Illllllllll 1 lllllllllijb 66' 24- ill llO ' if; ss rATEN Ero.

FEED A. HEAD, OE LYNN, MASSACHUSETTS, ASSIGNOH To THE EEECE BUTTON HOLE MACHINE CoMrANx, OE BOSTON, MASSACHUSETTS, A CORPORATION OE MAINE.

BUTTONHOLE-S'I'ITGI-IING MAC'IjII-NE.

Application filed September 18, 1913. Serial No. 790,387'.l

Toall whom t may concern.' Be it known that I, FRED A. READ, a' citizen of the United States, residing at Lynn, in the county of Essex and State of Massachusetts, have invented certain new and useful improvements in Buttonhole-Stitching Machines, of which the Afollowing is a specification, reference being had therein to the accompanying drawing. This invention relates to buttonhole stitching machines, particularly of that type known to the trade as the Reece buttonhole machine, wherein a stitch frame carrying the stitch forming mechanism on the one hand and a work clamp or support on the other hand are relatively movable so as to enable the stitching to be carried alongthe sides of the buttonhole and around its end or ends. Such stitch forming mechanism comprises usually an eye-pointed needle carrying the upper thread and below and Opposed thereto the so-called under sewing mechanism,7 which carries and operates an under thread in coperation with the needle. A sewing machine of this class is illustrated in prior patent of Dixon No. 695,039, dated March 11, 1902, which will supply many details and matters of description which may be for convenience omitted from the present application. y .l Y l The main object of the present invention is to aflord an under sewing mechanism of efficient construction and operation and possessing the merit of Simplicity and the advantages which pertain to simplified mechamsm. f

The further advantages hereof will either be set forth in the hereinafter following description or will be obvious to those skilled in the art. Y

First will be referred to the preferred embodiment of the present invention as constituting an illustration of the same, and thereafter the novel features will be pointed out in the claims. e

In the accompanying drawings forming a part hereof Figure 1 is a right-hand side elevation of the front portion of a button,- hole stitching machine embodying the present invention. Fig. 2 is a rear elevation of the under sewing mechanism detached. Fig. 3 is a front elevation of the under Sewing mechanism. Fig. 4 is a left elevation thereof. Fig. 5 is a front elevation of the part shown in Fig. l in a different position Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented-Pebl, 1916.

from Fig. 3. Fig. 6 isa top plan view of the I I undersewing mechanism. Figs. 7, 8, 9, 10,

and 1'1 are details of the looper mechanism.

Similar reference numerals designate' corresponding parts in the several figures.'

Certain parts are shown and may all be as in saidDixon patent, requiring therefore no detailed or other description except to enumerate them. Such parts include the clamp frame 1, the casing 2 containing the needle bar 3, it carrying an eye-pointed needle 4 for manipulating the upper thread, said needlebar and its casing being in practice mounted `in the stitch frame already referred Vto but not herein shown, the curb or cam casing`5 in practice securedto the movable stitch-frame so as to travel with it under the clamp frame, said casing having Suitable adjustable headed'bolts 6 which bear against smooth ways 7 at the under Side of the clamp frame, the rod 8 deriving its motion from a cam in thestitch frame, thel cutter 9 and its carrying lever 10, the under thread needle 11, the carrier 12 therefor, the fixed guide or race 13, the block 14,

said block having the circular upper end 15 adapting it t'o receive vat suitablek times a circular movement, the gear 16 fast on a sleeve 17 extending from block 14, the tension device 18 for the under thread, the looper 19 and the throat plate 20; valso the circular ring-like portion 21` of the'casing, which receives within it the circular upper end 15 Of the block 14,V and depending from said ring 21 a loop 22 having formed. `through it centrally at its lower end an` opening of such sizeV as to loosely receive hollow hub 23'Of gear 16, the gear being applied to the sleeve 17 and fixed there by a suitable nut 24. x The sleeve 17 has extended through it the hollow rod or bar 25, said rod receiving through the Opening in its lower end the second or underneath thread, suchthread being passed upwardly'through the rod 25 and vinto the under thread carrier l1. The thread may pass out of the hollow rod 25 it below the gear 16 a ball or enlargement 27,

it being as lherein shown embraced between 'two loose, cup-shaped disks 2S'and 29, both loosely surroundingthe-rod 25 and contacting the ball 27, said disks being borne recauses the oscillation of the lever 32 and' thereby reciprocates upwardly and downwardly, the hollow rod or bar 25.

In continuing the description of the macliin'e illustrated in the drawings hereof, willrefe'r to the lnew parts supplied by me and to the new arrangements and combinations of parts, during which reference will necessarily be made to parts which 72er se are not new herein but are for the first time employed in theV novel inter-relations and -arrangements which I seek to cover.

The oscillatory seat or so-calledblock 14, which may take any physical form, shall term the stock, as it is merely a carriage or frame for supporting the various working parts of the under mechanism. 1t shifts bodily, .for example circularly, with all of the working parts supported yby it, and these parts themselves move as may be required for stitching more or less independently of 'A the stocks shifting.

Gener-ally speaking the under sewing' mechanism hereof comprises in combination the movable stock referred to, and the following 'elements supported by said stock, namely, the movable under needle carrier 12, the movable thread looper 19, the movablef'actuator or up-and-down reciprocating rodv 25, which is adapted-to be exteriorly operated independently of the stocks shifting and connections hereinafter to be more specifically described whereby said actuator ac'tuates both said carrier and said looper.

Before describing the manner of actuation of the needle carrier and looper and the connections therefor, lf shall refer to a convenient thread take-up or measuring contrivance shown herein, but which per se forms no'part of the present invention. This comprises a three-armed lever, 36, 37, 38, pivoted at 39, the long arm 36 having at its extremity an eye or aperture for the thread, thearm 37 having a spring 40 for turning the leverleftwise'in F ig. 3, and the levers oscillation being'edected through a pin 41 on "the'up-and-down' moving' actuator rod 25.

InY order to adjust the movement of the leveran adjustable stop 42 is provided.l a portion of which stands in the path of the arm 38 to limit to any desired degree the 'upward movement thereof. It will be understood that the'carrier 12 is provided with a thread guide, for example asv shownV at 43, with which the take-up arm 36 coperates yas inv said Dixon patent.

Themovement of the under needle carrier 12 is preferably a simple up-and-down swinging' movement in the arc yof a circle determined by the fixed guide or race 13, the needle first passing upwardly through the buttonhole to a position above the fabric where it coperates with the upper needle, the under needle then returning to a position beneath the fabric where it again cooperates with the upper needle by the aid of the looper 19. The operation of the looper is not a simple swinging motion, but a compound motion consisting of the resultant of, first, an extended to-and-fro movement of the looper bodily between the needle paths and, second, a slight lateral vibration serving to carry the barb of the looper around the path of the under needle. r1`he purpose of such motion is that the looper may in moving toward the under needle path take a loop of upper thread at each descent of the upper needle and present such loop to the under needle so that the latter may ascend through the loop causing` an interlocking of the two threads.

Now will be described the following extremely simple trains of connections whereby theactuator in its up-and-down movements effects actuation of the under needle carrier and also effects both motions of the looper. lThe train of parts for driving the needle and its carrier 12 comprises stud extending rearwardly from the actuator 25, intermediary or lever 47 having a slot connection with the stud and link 48 connecting the levers upper end with a stud upon the needle carrier 12. rlhe lever 47 swings about an inclined pivot moving, therefore, in a plane parallel with the inclined plane of the needle carriers movement, the studand-slot connection 46 being such as to allow for the proper play in the movement of the parts.

It is proposed herein to give the looper 19 its proper described movements by means of a single device or cam. Heretofore it has been usual to swivel the looper upon a carrying lever and swing the lever for producin@d the extended to-and-fro movement and esci late the looper with respect to the lever for the slight lateral vibration. According the present improvement the looper 1s rigidly securedto its carrying lever and the lever is accorded both of the necessary movements to effect the desired purpose. To this end the looper lever 55 is pivoted to the stock by means'of a universal pivot device 56, sov constructed as to permit the'lever to swing bodily in the plane of the paper in Fig. 3 and, at they same time, to vibrate about the pivot in a direction substantially 5- normal to the paper, these movements being subject to proper control, as will hereinafter appear.' A downwardly extending portion orextension 57 of the looper lever serves the ldouble purpose of'a connection to the actuator 25'and Vfor control of the looper move-l ment. A. link 58, having a universal joint at each end, connects the Aactuator 25 and the looper lever extension 57 by means of studs thereupon` as indicated. Thus the up-anddown actuator movements cause to-and-froV 62a is, therefore, capable of rocking `in a vertical plane about a forwardly and rearwardly extending horizontal axis. To this sleeve 62EL is movably connected the looper lever 55. A. pivotal connection is shown in Fig. 9 which is a cross-section taken on the plane 9 9 of Fig. 8. Thus a pair of cone points 63, 63 are secured in the looper lever and engage recesses in the sleeve 62a. This` connection permits the looper lever to swing about an axis set substantially at right angles to the direction of the looper lever so that the lever may vibrate slightly out of its normal plane. It will thus be seen that the looper lever has a universal motion about the pivot device 55 which is in the nature of a gimbal. l

Sc far as described, the looper lever would be freely movable aboutV the cone point bearing and is controlled only in its toeand-fro movements about the central fixed stud bearing. It is proposed'to employ a Vcam for effecting the vibration of the lever. A single surface cam 65 is preferred, this being shown secured to the stock 14 in such position that the lower end of the looper lever extension may ride over the curvatures of thecam. In order to keep the looper lever in contact with the cam a spring 66 is shown secured for convenience to the forward end of the stud 61 and at its free end engaging in a recess of and bearing rearwardly upon the forward side of the looper lever extension 57.

For the purpose of affording an adjustable and renewable connection between the looper lever and the cam the former is shown provided with a sliding block device 70.which may be secured upon the extension 57 in different positions by means of a set screw 71. A cam-contact screw 72 extends from the block rearwardly through an elongated aperture in the extension 57 and into position to contact the forward side of the fixed cam 65, a lock nut 7 3 serving to confine the contact screw in adjusted position. Figs. 10 and 11 show these details, Fig. 10 being a cross-section on the plane 10-10 of Fig. 3, and Fig. 11 a cross-section on the plane 11-11 of Fig. 10.

Referring to Figs. 3 and 7 the cam 65 is shown as havingvan outlying fiange 67 at each end whereby the cam may be screwconnected to the stock 14. Fig. 7 vbest shows the contour of the cam and thereon the extreme positions of contact screw 72 are indicated at 68 and 69 respectively. The lefthand position 68 is that in which the looper barb is at its withdrawn or right-hand position. The operation is substantially that, during each stitch as the actuator 25 rises, it forces the looper lever extension tothe right, thus shifting the contact screw across the cam from position 68 to position y69. Thus the bodily swinging of the looper towardthe path of the Aunder needle is ac-l companied by a slight lateralmotion produced orpcontrolled by the cam 65. The looper barb during this motion becomes gradually laterally displaced until at the high point of the cam the vlooper barb has passed by the path ofthe under needle whereupon the cam permits the looper kto return slightly toward its normal plane, thus causing the barb to move directly be Ahind the under needle, as desired.

ItV will thus be `seen that there has been described a buttonhole stitching machine attaining the advantages' recited and other advantages will be apparent to those skilled infthe art.v Since many matters of design, arrangement, combination, detail and other features may be affordedwithout departing fromthe principles hereof, it is not intended tolimit the invention to such features excepting in so far as the same are specified in the appended claims.

`What is'claimed is i* Y 1; In a buttonhole stitching machine,

stitching mechanism including in combination, a work support, a reciprocable upper needle, a shiftable stock below the work support, and the following elements carried by the stock, an actuator operable independently of the stocks shifting but in harmony with the upper needle, a reciprocable under needle actuated .from said actuator, a looper adapted to coperate with said under needle by a compound movement, a downwardly extending rigid looper-carrying lever, a universal pivot between the stock and lever located a substantial distance beneath said looper, a connection whereby the actuator bodily swings the lever to and fro about said universal pivot, and an automatic device located substantially below said universal pivot and coperating with said lever for causing said lever to slightly vibrate about said universal pivot laterally to its to and fro movements.

2. In a buttonhole stitching machine, stitching mechanism including in combination, a work support, a reciprocable upper needle, a shiftable stock below the work support, and the following elements carried by the stock, an actuator operable independentlyofthe. stocks shifting butin harmony with the upper needle, a reciprocable under needle actuated from said actuator, a looper adapted to coperate with said under needle by a compound movement, a downwardly extending' rigid looper-car rying lever, a universal vpivot between the stock and lever located va substantial distance beneath said looper, a connection whereby the actuator bodily swings the lever to and fro about said universal pivot, and an automatic devicefor causing vsaid lever to slightly vibrate about said univer.- sal pivot laterally to its to and fro movements, said device comprising a cam and follower mounted one upon the lever and the other upon the stock substantially be.- low said universal pivot and adapted to determine the loopers compound movement.

3. In a buttonhole stitching machine, stitching mechanism including in combination, a work support, a reciprocable upper needle, a shiftable stock below the work support, and the following elements carried by trhe stock, an actuator operable independently of the stocls shifting but in harmony with the upper needle, a reciprocable under needle actuated from said actuator, a looper adapted to coperate with said under needle by a compound movement, a horizontal stud fixed on the stock a substantial distance beneath the looper, -a sleeve movable about said stud, a recessed leverk surrounding said sleeve, gimbal pivots between said lever and sleeve, saidflever extending .upwardlyand rigidly carrying the loopery at its upper. end,

slightly vibrate laterally to its to and fro movements. y y

4. In a buttonhole stitching machine, stitching mechanism including in combination, a work support, a reciprocable upper needle, a shiftable stock below the work support, and the following elements carried by the stock, an actuator operable independently of the stocks shifting but in harmony with the upper needle, a reciprocable under needle actuated from said actuator, a looper adapted to coperate with said under needle by a compound movement, a downwardly extending rigid looper-carrying lever, a universal pivot between the stock and lever located a substantial distance beneath said looper, a vconnection whereby the actuator bodily swings the lever to and fro about said universal pivot, an adjustable follower mounted on said lever a substantial distance below said pivot, and a suitably-shaped cam iXed to said stock adapted to be engaged by the follower during the levers to and fro movements for determining its compound movements.

In testimony whereof l affix my signature in presence of two witnesses.

` FRED A. READ.

Witnesses TERENCE D.u GORDON, J. VARREN'-N1CH0LS Copies of this patent may be obtained for five cents each, by addressing the Commissioner of Patents. Washington, D. C. 

